Clarets boss Sean Dyche accepts his side deserve to be where they are - entrenched in the bottom three.

And he admits they were very much second best as they suffered a ninth defeat in 11 games, going down 5-1 to Everton at Turf Moor.

Burnley are dejected after Everton's opening goal

Burnley were 3-0 down within 22 minutes, and though Ben Gibson pulled one back before half-time, two further goals after the break saw Burnley well beaten.

And Dyche said: "We didn't deserve to get anything, you can't start 20 minutes of a Premier League game like we did.

"Credit to Everton, they started well, after a tough result the other day, they had energy and a purpose, without peppering us, but the feel of the game.

"You can't give away goals like that, it was a poor first goal, a sloppy free kick for the second - Lowts clips him and there's no need to if you get round early.

"And the third...I hate talking about three, but it's a tough one to take, we can't get a penalty and Ben is only jumping.

"I've seen it back, he's trying to get leverage, their lad hits him as he does...

"I think that's tough, I think the linesman gives it and I don't know how he sees if from there.

"I only mention that because, two, and then we nick one back...different feel, then you never know."

Burnley had a glimmer of hope at half-time, and James Tarkowski sent over a great chance to make it 3-2 early in the second half: "The lads responded, even at 3-0, to their credit, the last 15 minutes of the first half, there was a better feel, better energy, we managed to nick a goal, and I said at half-time, the next goal is absolutely massive.

"We had a golden chance and Tarky puts it over, and you never know if that goes in, purely because they might be a little bit nervous after conceding the other day, but that was our best chance gone.

"It’s not just about scorelines it’s about performances as well, and lately they've been better, there's a better energy, better endeavour, better quality.

"Today you can’t judge because you’re out of the game before you’re in it.

"It's very difficult then to judge the performance, they know the games coming up are absolutely massive for our season."

Dyche doesn't get too high or too low, and is looking to simply find a way out of this situation: "It’s not about concerns, it’s about realities – I only deal in realities, I always have done.

"We are where we are because we haven’t deserved any better. The league table tells you we haven't.

"We haven’t kept the margins tight enough. When we do, we're always an effective unit, because we find a way of scoring goals, even in tight games.

"But we haven't kept it tight enough, we haven't found the details in both boxes that we were last season, and that's been the biggest difference.

"Lots of different things go in the melting pot, but at the end, that's what the difference is.

"Even today, at 3-2 we get a golden chance and don't put it away.

"And we've given away too many soft goals."

Dyche has said previously he expected this season to be tough, given the usual demands of the Premier League, a disappointing transfer window and the extra exertions of Europe: "I look at it as what Burnley is about, last season was a fantastic journey for everyone but I said this one was a restart situation, the only way you can keep kicking on from seventh is is spend 200m, and we aren't going to do that.

"You have to restart, replan, remodel at the start of every season, that's one of the challenges, it's always there, it's just a fact of the challenge."

Asked whether he feels he has enough credit in the bank to get Burnley out of trouble, he added: "It's not about credit in the bank, it's about realities, that's all I've ever dealt with in my career, it's not about befores, it’s about nows.

"How can we effect now? That's what's important.

"We have 19 important games, it's about taking on those games and working to find that mental freedom to go out and perform.

"When we do, we've seen signs of it, then we're a good outfit.

"We expect more and have to deliver more."

And he feels the fans will be vitally important.

While there have been some murmurings on social media, there hasn't been much stronger dissent at the games, and Dyche noted: "I thought the fans were good, particularly when we scored, they were raucous for 15 minutes, they could smell 'you never know', we scored and the energy changed in the side and the performance.

"We started well second half, and we had a golden chance, and they kept going. I won't question the mentality of the players to keep going, and the fans will play a part in that - they have to, the team is going to need that."

Gibson came in Kevin Long, and Dyche explained the decision to hand his £15m summer buy a first league start: "Just to try and effect it. We beat Brighton, but lost the other three, half-decent performances, but could we fine-tune it?

"I wanted to see the shape operate against a side not as powerful as three of the last four sides we've played, could we effect it in those games?

"But the game was gone so quickly, you couldn't judge. Three set pieces, it's not a tactical thing.